About Suzuki Early Childhood Education

Suzuki ECE is an early childhood program that uses music to develop the whole child, including social, emotional, cognitive, kinesthetic, and musical skills. Through the use of a carefully designed music curriculum, we aim to nurture child development, parent-child bonding, and awaken the child’s readiness for learning.

Videos presented here with permission from Wan Tsai Chen, Artistic Director of Suzuki Talent Education Society, Calgary

Core Concepts of SECE

1. Every child can learn

Shin'ichi Suzuki's movement started the moment he realized that all children learn their native tongue at a very high ability. He, and all Suzuki teachers, believe that this ability to acquire speech during our first years of life speaks to a universal truth about the human spirit: We are born brilliant, with an incredible capacity to learn. As teachers, parents, and mentors to children, it is our responsibility to harness this ability and to help create an environment for children so that every child can learn to his or her highest abilities.

2. Ability develops early

We are babies when we first acquire language. Suzuki believed that ability development begins from age zero​; we believe it begins even prenatally. See the video at the end of this page, From the First Heartbeat, courtesy of Wan Tsai Chen, Artistic Director of Suzuki Talent Education Society, Alberta.

3. Environment nurtures growth

Our classes help to cultivate a calm presence within your child, and yourself, so that learning is possible. Parents learn to create a positive learning environment for their child through their own positivity, encouragement, support, and love for their child. This nurturing environment created by the parents and adults in class encourages development and growth within the child.

4. Children learn from one another

…what the children enjoy most, is the group playing. They play with children who are more advanced than they are; the influence is enormous, and is marvelous for their training. This is the real talent education.”
- Shin’ichi Suzuki, Nurtured by Love

As children learn from their environment, their environment is not only the adults but other children; their peers. All children will use their senses for learning, and while younger children often copy older children who serve as models, the older children learn to develop sensitivity and empathy toward younger children.

5. Success breeds success

Once we are successful in one task, our ability snowballs. The confidence we gain from mastery of the first task, boosts us to push through the next task, and so on. Completion of these tasks often result in social rewards (a hug, or praise), motivating us further.

Develop ability from what a child can already do, and that ability will promote the happiness of doing things better and better. An unlimited amount of ability when parent, and child, are having fun together. This is simple but often overlooked.” Ability Development from Age Zero, p. 21

6. Parental involvement is critical

As parents, we are our child's environment. Suzuki is famously quoted, "Children learn to smile from their parents.​" Parents enroll in class with their child & attend on a regular basis. Experiencing class together increases parent & child bonding, and as a parent you will learn HOW to observe your child learns.
“...what better person is there to instruct children than the [parent]? The [parent]’s love, [their] patience, and [their] dreams make the strength of instruction more powerful than anything else."

7. Encouragement is essential

Encouragement completes the learning process. Children this age are highly motivated to please the adults around them. Encouragement offers a social reward, which helps the child to understand that their learning was successful. Without positive encouragement, very young children do not understand when they have learned something.

Videos presented with permission from Wan Tsai Chen, Artistic Director of Suzuki Talent Education Society, Calgary